Wednesday, February 23, 2011

HEY Brad Wall! The Rent Is Too Damn High! Time For Rent Controls!

Low income rent options have become very slim in Saskatchewan due to the fact that our RIGHT wing government has abandoned all concepts of public housing. Sticking to their flawed 'unfettered free market' ideology, Brad Wall will tell you that the private sector will have to solve the problem. Nonsense.

Saskatchewan's home builders are only interested in slapping together expensive homes for those who can afford them. Moderately priced housing is not being constructed anywhere in the province. So, to fill the gap, old housing with high rental costs are the only option for those who have been left behind in Brad Wall's free market paradise. And because these housing options are few and far between, the rental price has been jacked up by Brad Wall's slumlord buddies creating a situation where bad housing is highly overpriced on the market.

You see, RIGHT wing ideology holds to the firm belief that if you are not rich, that's your own fault. Can't find a job that pays well? That's your own fault. Can't afford inflated rental costs on your minimum wage job? That's your own fault.

Right on cue, Saskatchewan Party types have raised their collective voices to denounce 'socialist housing'. "Justice Minister Don Morgan said the Saskatchewan Party government has no appetite for introducing rent control, and is instead focused on increasing the supply of available housing. Rent control could do the opposite, Morgan contended. "We think it's a disincentive to having developers put more property on the market," he said."

Hey Saskatchewan Party ... the problem is that 'developers' are NOT putting affordable property on the market!

Saskatchewan people are paying the price for Brad Wall's idiotic ideology!

It is no coincidence that after the Harris regime eliminated rent controls and abandoned social housing, the rate of homelessness in Ontario skyrocketed. Rent control is definitely a battle worth fighting.